ALERT: 'The Dog Was Found Shot, the Puppies Have Disappeared' - A Law That Does Not Work

Yesterday, another dog was killed in the Vahagni neighborhood by gunfire. This was reported by a resident, Maria Ter-Anatonyan, who contacted Auroranews.am.

The dog had six puppies. Both the mother dog and the puppies were being cared for by local residents. Deworming, vaccinations, and everything necessary had been done. However, the dog was found shot yesterday, and the puppies have disappeared.

According to the law on 'Responsible Treatment of Animals,' an amendment proposed by former MP Naira Zohrabyan in 2019 stipulates that those who engage in such cruel treatment toward animals should be punished. However, to date, there has been no precedent for the law's implementation. No one has been held accountable.

'This chaotic situation is unacceptable. The person who is capable of killing an animal that has puppies and that has not disturbed anyone could also aim a weapon at a human with the same coldness. Moreover, a question arises as to what weapon was used, whether it was registered or not,' said the reporting citizen.

Maria Ter-Anatonyan also mentioned that she has sent a written inquiry to the police to understand how many cases of animal cruelty have been registered, how many cases have been opened, and what resolutions they have received. According to the response to her inquiry, there were 17 registered cases in both 2020 and 2021, while in the first six months of 2022, there were 10 criminal cases, of which three from 2020 were closed, and one from each 2021 and 2022 was closed as well. All criminal cases were closed due to lack of corpus delicti.

It turns out that the law exists, but there is no precedent. Over these years, no one has faced accountability, and the slaughter of animals continues in various regions of Armenia.